Tyler Independent School District


Tyler Independent School District is an independent school district based in Tyler, Texas.
In addition to serving most of Tyler, the district serves the city of Noonday and rural areas in west central Smith County. Notable alumni include Earl Campbell and Sandy Duncan.
In 2019, the school district was rated as a "B" by the Texas Education Agency.

History

Like other Texas school districts, Tyler ISD formerly separated children into different schools on the basis of race. The district established a plan to racially integrate; the board of trustees approved such a plan in 1965, eleven years after the Supreme Court's landmark ruling in Brown v. Board of Education. The district was not fully integrated until July 1970, after a federal court ordered immediate integration.
In 1982, Tyler ISD was party to the Supreme Court Case Plyler v. Doe, which overturned its 1977 policy of charging an annual $1,000 tuition fee to undocumented immigrant children to compensate for the funding lost when the state of Texas prohibited the use of state funds for children who had not been legally admitted to the country. The landmark case concerned whether the Equal Protection Clause could be applied to undocumented immigrants.
In 2020, both of its high schools were renamed: Robert E. Lee High School to Tyler Legacy High School, and John Tyler High School back to its original name Tyler High School.

Demographics

EthnicityPercent
White21.5 %
Hispanic47.4 %
African American26.6 %
Native American0.3 %
Asian/Pacific Islander1.4 %
Two or More Races2.9 %

Leadership

School Board

The District is run by a seven-member school board of trustees who are elected in single member districts to three-year terms each May.
Current Member NameRoleTrustee sinceCurrent term expires in
District 1R. Wade WashmonPresident20132025
District 3Yvonne AtkinsTrustee20202025
District 2Artis NewsomeTrustee20202026
District 4Cody LevretsTrustee20232026
District 5Aaron D. MartinezTrustee20152027
District 6Lindsey HarrisonTrustee20212025
District 7Andy BergfeldTrustee20122027

Former Trustees include: Rev. Fritz Hager Jr, Rev. Orenthia Mason, Freeman Sterling, Jean Washington and Therelee Washington.

Schools

High Schools (Grades 9-12)

Middle Schools (Grades 6-8)

Elementary Schools (Grades PK-5)

  • Austin Elementary
  • Bell Elementary
  • Bonner Elementary
  • Clarkston Elementary
  • Dixie Elementary
  • Douglas Elementary
  • Griffin Elementary
  • Jack Elementary
  • Jones Elementary
  • Orr Elementary
  • Owens Elementary
  • Peete Elementary
  • Ramey Elementary
  • Rice Elementary
  • Woods Elementary

Innovation Schools (Grades PK-8)

  • Caldwell Arts Academy
  • Birdwell Dual Language Immersion School

Auxiliary Facilities

Tyler ISD also maintains the Professional Development Complex. This facility houses a small number of information technology staff and serves as a large training facility for Tyler ISD faculty and staff. It is located in the building which served as the former campus of Peete Elementary.
Gary Elementary also serves as the district's site for elementary gifted and talented education